Direct Mail

We held an event recently and didn’t follow our own advice. The advice we give clients, that is. We neglected to promote it through a well-coordinated combination of direct mail, email (both blasts and individual) and social media. The event was in partnership with another firm, and the folks there decided to promote it solely through email. We followed their lead. We also made a substantial investment in paid social-media promotion...

Edith Cruise called to tell me someone named Dan Savage had mailed her a pornographic letter. “Do you know who he is?” Cruise asked me. Uh, yeah, I do. Savage is a journalist who writes a sex and relationship column called "Savage Love." People write to him for advice, but Dear Abby he is not. I…

Your team puts a tremendous amount of time and effort into every direct mail campaign. You’re meticulous about the offer, the creative, the timing, the list and the proper response channels. So you’re not going to put all that energy into creating a single piece without getting as much value as possible out of it.…

Utilizing direct mail fundraising is an effective way to circumvent the crowded inbox. But just because you send direct mail out doesn’t mean that’s the way the donations will come in. In fact, 35 percent of donors say they prefer to respond to direct mail by giving online, according to “The Direct Mail Paradox and How You Are Losing Donors,” an infographic from MobileCause. So, what does this mean for your nonprofit, and how can you make your online donation process easier?

The holidays represent a huge sales season for many companies, but such a bountiful take also means heavy competition. While your competitors are focused on newspaper inserts and, likely, online advertising, you can use direct-mail to reach customers one-on-one with tangible marketing materials that offer measurable response. The following lists five powerful direct-mail holiday marketing…

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, and if you look around at all the visual data that surrounds us, you would see it’s true. For example, take the humble road sign. Pedestrian crossings, railroad tracks and even back roads known for their high-traffic deer are all indicated using visuals without any assistance…

Writing direct-mail copy, like most things, gets easier as you practice. Don’t expect perfection on your first try—or probably your 10th try, either. But also don’t stop writing; this old dog knows that a lot of us are not born fundraising copy writers. But that doesn’t stop us from trying to write copy that will—even in a small way—help change our world for the better.

Last week I promised to provide practical tips on writing direct mail. For some of you, writing direct mail is something you enjoy, and for others, it’s something you just have to do. But I think we can all agree on one thing: the direct-mail letter that doesn’t get read (or at least scanned) is unlikely to raise much income. People need to read the words we’ve carefully chosen to convey the need and our solution, but we can’t demand that of anyone....

While I am by no means the best direct-mail writer in the world, I have learned a lot since I was “asked” to write a letter back in 1980. I worked for a nonprofit that struggled to make payroll, and our writer had resigned. I met all the requirements for adding “direct-mail writer” to my workload: I could walk and breathe simultaneously, and I was too dumb to say “No.” ...

If you've been following our 10th annual NonProfit PRO Gold Awards for Fundraising Excellence coverage over the last few weeks, you've no doubt seen the many great flashback recaps of previous award winners. You're also likely aware that the submission deadline for this year's awards is today. Have you submitted your campaign? If you haven't, fear not: We're extending the deadline for submissions to Friday, Sept. 25...